Unexpected meetings
by gredelina1
Summary: Winner of short story contest, wolfy edition. POLY ALERT: Bella returned home after four years on the run to face her demons. She never expected to find love again, especially not with two men... Paul/Bella/Jared
1. Chapter 1

This is my entry for the Short Story contest, Wolfy edition. I'm very happy to announce that I won the contest. Thank you to everyone who voted for me! Since the contest now is over, I'm free to post the story on my profile. I'm going to post the original five chapters of the short story, and then I'll continue with new chapters. I hope you'll enjoy it.

Loads of love to my beautiful beta and friend Similar for working on this story for me!

**Disclaimer- All recognizable copyrighted and trademarked items mentioned herein belong to their respective owner, most especially Stephenie Meyer. Everything else belongs to the respective author.**

BPOV

I clutched the newspaper article tight to my chest while I watched the landscape pass by the window. I knew she would catch up to me some day, but I hadn't expected her to go to this extreme. I should have known though, and that thought had been eating at me for since I found out. By now I was resigned to the fact that it didn't matter how many times I second guessed myself and my actions in the past. No amount of regret would change the outcome, and I was just relieved that it would all be over soon.

The bus came to a stop and I grabbed the bag that held all of my worldly possessions. I pulled my hoodie up and stepped out onto Forks' land for the first time in four years. It felt odd to be back in the place where my life had been irrevocably altered, but it was fitting in a way that it would end where it had begun.

I threw my bag over my shoulder and started to walk towards the little old house I had once called home. I held my head low, hoping no one would recognize me. I had no desire to talk to anyone, let alone try to offer up an explanation of my whereabouts, and I definitely didn't want the sympathy or pity people were sure to bestow onto me.

When I took the turn into my old road I could see that nothing had changed. My old truck was still parked in front, and the paint on the house was chipped and in desperate need of restoration. The steps creaked under my feet and I closed my eyes for a second before pulling my old key out of my pocket. I slowly unlocked the door and walked inside.

The familiar smells of take-out food, beer and cologne assaulted my nose and my legs gave out from under me. I slid down against the wall in the hallway and landed on my ass with a thump. Everything was exactly as I remembered it, but one crucial piece was missing. I pulled the newspaper clipping out from my pocket and stared at it for the hundredth time.

_SMALL TOWN CHIEF OF POLICE MURDERED_

_The small town of Forks, Washington, is in a state of shock after the grisly murder of the local chief of Police. The body of Charles 'Charlie' Swan was found early Wednesday morning in the woods by a local man walking his dog. The police are reluctant to release any details at this time, but according to witnesses, Chief Swan was brutally murdered, and the perpetrator had carved a 'V' in his chest._

_Chief Swan is survived by his 22 year old daughter Isabella Swan. According to town's people, Isabella has been travelling for a few years, and has been uncontactable. If you have news of Isabella please inform the Forks Police Department._

_The funeral is scheduled for…_

No matter how many times I read the words, they still didn't really register as the truth in my mind. It was too surreal. _My father was dead, murdered, because of me, and I find out through a newspaper?_

After the initial shock had subsided, I had known what I needed to do. It was time to finish it, once and for all. I had been a fool for thinking I could escape, and Charlie had ended up paying the price with his life.

I shook my head to expel the thoughts of guilt that had crept up on me again. I had not made it back to Forks to dwell on my mistakes. I was here for a reason and I needed to go on with it.

I stood up, folded the newspaper clipping, and put it back in my pocket. I walked into the living room and brushed my hand against the back of Charlie's recliner. If I closed my eyes I could see him sitting there with a can of Vitamin R, watching a game on the flat screen. I expected to feel the familiar pain flare up, but instead an eerie calm descended upon me. I calmly picked up the items I was after, took one last breath of Charlie scented air and left.

The key to my truck had been in its usual place, and I prayed that the truck would still function enough to get me where I was going. I grabbed the can of gas that Charlie always kept in the shed for emergencies, emptied it into the tank and drove off.

I arrived at the cemetery, which thankfully was devoid of other people. I didn't know where Charlie was buried, but it was a fairly small lot and I figured if I looked for a fresh grave I would find it quite easily. I searched the ground for about five minutes when I spotted a grave with a huge amount of flowers and candles around it. I steeled myself and walked slowly towards it. When I got close enough, I could see the writing on the headstone. It was my dad's name.

I dropped to my knees in front of the place where my father was lying, buried deep underneath six feet of soil. A sob threatened to escape me, and I clamped a hand against my mouth, fighting it off. I took out the picture I had taken with me and looked at it for a long time. It was a picture of me and Charlie, taken a sunny day when I was about eight years old. I had spent the summer in Forks as usual, and on that particular day, Charlie had brought me to the lake to go fishing with him.

We'd had a great time at first, Charlie had been so excited about sharing his favorite pastime with me, and I had really enjoyed the tranquility of the water and the sounds of the birds chirping. Of course, me being me, I managed to get tangled up in the fishing line and ended up falling into the water. The fishing trip got cut short and I had grumbled the whole ride home, to Charlie's amusement. When we got home, Harry Clearwater had been there and Charlie asked him to take a picture of us, he wanted a memento of the big 'fish' he had caught in the lake. He had the picture framed and it had stood in the living room ever since.

Looking at the picture now was bittersweet. I wanted to scream at the little grumpy soaked girl to stop moping and savor the time spent with her father. I wanted to yell at her to take a look at the man standing there with his arm around her shoulders, not caring if he got wet as well. I wanted her to see the look of adoration in his eyes when he looked at his little girl. I wanted to tell her to never do anything that would cause him to lose the light in his eyes. To never make him worry about her, to never get mixed up in a world she had no business being in, a world that would ultimately lead to her father's death.

"I'm so sorry, Charlie," I whispered. "I'm sorry that I wasn't here for your funeral. I'm sorry for only calling you a few times over the last four years, for making you worry about me, for not being able to tell you what was going on with me. I'm sorry for being such a naïve kid and putting my trust in the wrong people. I'm sorry that you got hurt-" My voice broke and I had to take a moment to collect myself.

"I'm so sorry you had to pay for my mistakes, dad," I continued whispering, tears running freely down my cheeks. "I wish I could do it all over again. I would be smart and stay away when I was told to." I took a deep breath and briefly thought about Edward trying to warn me off. I had been so stupid and infatuated back then, refusing to see the danger that literally stared me in the eye.

"I wish I'd had spent more time with you, dad. I wish that I'd hugged you more and told you that I loved you. I love you, daddy, I love you so much." The sobs took over and I couldn't speak.

I allowed myself to cry one final time, to mourn my father. A man that had dedicated his life to serve and protect others, a man that showed his love for his only child through actions rather than in words. A man that stepped out of his comfort zone to buy purple sheets for his daughter. A man that put snow chains on his daughter's truck so she would be safer on the icy roads. A man that had been viciously murdered in order to draw his daughter out of hiding.

I pulled myself together and the eerie calm started to come back. "I can't fix things, dad, but I can end them." I gently placed a kiss to the picture and then put it down on top of the headstone.

"I will make sure that this ends today, I'm not letting her kill anyone else in my place," I promised. "If there's a place for me where you are, we'll see each other soon, if not, then at least know that I'm finally facing the consequences of my actions head on, like you would have done."

I took one last look at my father's final resting place and then turned around for the second part of my mission, time to face my demon and get this finished once and for all.

"I'm not running anymore, Victoria," I yelled. "If you want me, you know where to find me." It was time to go back to the place where it all had begun.

I was going to _their _house.

My truck miraculously made it all the way to the big house in the woods. It was obvious that no cars had been driven on the secluded road for years, and if I wasn't driving a truck I would probably been stuck somewhere in the vegetation by now. I gave my old truck an appreciative clap on the dashboard and stepped out. Aside from the overgrown garden and the weeds everywhere, the house looked exactly the same as I remembered it.

I walked up the stairs and peeked in through the windows. I could see Edward's piano covered in dust sheets, and it seemed fitting in a morbid sort of way. It was packed away and left behind, just like me. I pressed my hand against the window and said a silent goodbye to the Cullen family.

I turned around and sat down on the bottom of the stairs, preparing myself for what I was about to do. I knew it probably wouldn't take long for Victoria to show up, but I didn't want to wait any longer than I had to. I bunched the sleeve of my hoodie up over my elbow, pulled the Swiss army knife out of my pocket and switched the blade out. I put the tip of the blade on my arm and pressed down. The pain from the cut barely registered with me and I watched the blood trickle down my arm with a satisfied feeling.

"I'm here, Victoria," I shouted and waved my bloody arm around. "Come and get me!"

I heard some rustling noises in the trees to my right and I couldn't help but smile. It was finally ending. My pathetic excuse for a life was coming to a long overdue end. The relief was overwhelming and I closed my eyes for a second to relish in the feeling. The noises grew louder and I could sense that I was being watched. I opened my eyes and saw… _wolves_?

"What the hell?" I cried out. I was expecting to see red hair and red eyes, but instead two larger than life creatures padded closer to me. I had never heard of wolves this big, and I wondered if I had lost more blood than I thought. Maybe I was hallucinating? I closed my eyes again and then slowly opened them. _Nope, they were still there._

"Go away!" I stood up and did a shooing motion with my still bleeding arm, causing little red droplets to paint the porch in a speckled pattern. _Well, that'll be a nice welcome present for Edward when he comes back to Forks one day_. I thought dryly.

The wolves stopped moving and just stood there looking at me. They had probably never seen a human behave like me before. I'm sure most people screamed and tried to run away if they came face to face with these giants. Considering the fact that, at least to my knowledge, no one had reported the findings of overgrown wolves, the odds of getting away alive was slim to none.

"Did you hear me? Go away! It's not supposed to be like this, you can't kill me. She has to do it." I had no idea why I was talking to the animals, but I was starting to feel desperate. One of the wolves let out a little whimper and if I didn't know better I would say that he sounded sad.

"I have a plan, dammit! You're ruining it," I yelled at them. The wolves turned their heads and looked at each other, one of them nodded his head and the other turned around and ran back towards the woods. _That couldn't be normal wolf behavior, could it?_ I knew that wolves were intelligent animals, but what I had just witnessed looked a lot more like human communication than that of an animal.

I stood absolutely still, watching the remaining wolf with confusion. _What was going on? Why didn't they attack? Why didn't Victoria show up to chase them away from her prize?_

All of a sudden a man came walking out from the place the wolf had disappeared to. He was tall, extremely well built and clothed only in a pair of cutoff jeans. No shoes. I didn't recognize him, but he was obviously Native American, maybe Quileute. _What was he doing? Did he not see the giant wolf?_

I wanted to yell out to him to not come any closer, but as soon as I looked in his eyes all I wanted was for him to get as close as possible.

He froze, staring me in the eye, a look of wonder passing over him. Out of the corner of my eye I could see the wolf watching us like he was watching a tennis match. The man shook his head as if to clear it and continued walking towards me, never breaking eye contact.

I felt as if I was on fire, my body was trembling and calling out for him. I desperately needed him to touch me. I realized that I had taken a few steps forwards, but I couldn't stop myself.

He was right in front of me now, close enough for me to feel the heat coming off his body. He reached out his hand and gently cupped my cheek. I leaned into his touch, relishing in the feel of his warm hand. His brown eyes were mesmerizing and I wanted to study them, to get to know their exact color. I wanted to know everything about this man, and that thought scared me to death.

I tore my eyes away from him and quickly took a couple of steps back. The action caused him to sigh sadly and I felt a sharp pain in my chest by the thought of him being in distress. _What the hell was this?_ I felt as if I was under some kind of spell, and I needed to snap out of it and focus on the reason I was here to begin with. Whoever this beautiful man was, I was not going to let him get hurt because of me. The longer he stayed here the greater the risk that Victoria would show up and make him collateral damage.

"Look," I started, my voice slightly shaky. "I don't know who you are or what's going on, but you need to go," I pleaded.

"Paul," he said and his voice sent a thrill through me.

"What?"

"My name," he answered in that delicious deep voice. "My name is Paul."

"Paul," I said his name with reverence. His face lit up with a smile and he took a step closer to me. _God, he was beautiful_. I licked my lips and looked at his lips. They looked so soft and plump; I just wanted to kiss them and maybe nibble a little on that bottom lip. _Get it together, Bella!_

"No," I said, trying to ignore the look of hurt that appeared in his eyes when I put my hands up to keep him away from me. "You can't be here, it's not safe."

A muffled noise that sounded a lot like a snort came from my left. Startled I turned around and realized that it came from the wolf. I had totally forgotten about the strange, huge animal only a few feet away. What was this power Paul seemed to have over me? I had never reacted like this to anyone and I didn't like it. Not now. It was too late.

Paul sighed a little and said, "I know it's not safe, Bella, but I'm not leaving you here."

"How do you know my name?" I asked suspiciously. "Has she taken to sending humans to do her dirty work now?" I didn't feel as if he was a danger to me, but I didn't know what to believe. He happened to show up at this secluded house in the middle of the woods right when I had called Victoria out, and he knew my name? Something was going on and I didn't like it.

"I don't know what you're talking about, but I know your name because I'm a friend of Jacob Black."

"Jacob?" I squeaked out. That was a person I had tried not to think about for the last years. He had been my best friend and promised to never hurt me, but he had suddenly pulled away from me, ending our friendship without any explanation. His actions had been the catalyst to my leaving Forks.

"Yes, he's always thinking about you, so I feel as if I know you even though we've hardly met before." There were so many things about that answer that didn't seem right and I was starting to lose my patience.

"Look, I don't know what sort of weirdo you are," I spat and instinctively took a step back when his eyes darkened and something akin to a growl slipped past those luscious lips of his.

"I hardly think that I'm in Jacob's thoughts that much, if at all, and how would you know what he's thinking of anyway? And I'm fairly sure that we have never met each other, I would _definitely _remember you." _Why did I have to add that last part?_

"Oh, but you wouldn't remember, it was the night when Sam found you in the woods after that _leech_ had left," he said, sounding sad and disgusted at the same time.

"W-w-what did you just say?" I stuttered out. _What did he know?_

"Never mind," I continued before he had a chance to answer my question. "You need to go, and if you can get that overgrown dog over there to leave too, it would be great."

"We're not going anywhere without you," Paul gritted out between clenched teeth, it seemed as if his patience were wearing out as well. I noticed how he included the wolf in his declaration, but I didn't have time to ask any more questions.

"You're standing here in front of the leeches' house, bleeding, there's not a chance in hell I'm leaving you here." I looked down at my arm, suddenly aware of the pain from the cut.

"You're coming with me to La Push, and we'll get that taken care of." It wasn't a suggestion, it was an order, and I bristled.

"I'm not going anywhere with you! Who the hell do you think you are, showing up here, interfering with things, and expect me to do what you tell me to do? I don't even know you. Go away!" I yelled and turned to walk back over to the porch.

I didn't get very far though, Paul grabbed me by my waist and the heat of his hands sent shivers down my spine. He pulled me back against his body and wrapped his arms around me. His body was as warm as his hands, and I could feel the muscles ripple underneath his skin. I wanted to melt into him and let him do whatever he wanted to me, and that only pissed me off more.

He leaned down and spoke with a husky voice in my ear, "I told you I'm not leaving without you, and I meant it. Now you have a choice; you either quietly come with me, or I throw you over my shoulder and carry you. Either way, you're coming with me."

The tone of his voice, his breathe in my ear, the hardness of his body, everything about him was driving me insane with desire, but my mind was still screaming at me.

"Fuck you," I said, trying to wriggle out of his grip. "You don't understand, I _need_ to be here."

"No you don't. I don't know what you think you're going accomplish here, but I know I wouldn't like it, and I'm not letting you."

"You're not _letting_ me?" I asked incredulously.

"No," he said simply.

"Who the hell died and put you in charge over me?" As soon as the words left my mouth the crushing pain of losing Charlie caused me to go weak at the knees. Paul tightened his grip around me and held me up.

"I just found you," he said in a soft voice, "and I'm going to do whatever it takes to keep you safe."

"I don't understand…" The fight in me started to wane and it scared me more than anything. I had been on a mission to finish things once and for all, and the sense of relief that had come with that decision had been the first soothing feeling I'd felt in years. If I gave in now and let him take me away from here, Victoria would still be after me and more people would be killed because of me. I couldn't let that happen, but I was so tired of fighting. I had fought for years, and I didn't have it in me to be strong anymore. I wanted out.

"Please," I implored. "Please, let me go."

"Never," he said and spun me around impossibly fast, locking eyes with me. "I'll _never_ let you go."

He looked fierce and determined, but there was something else in his eyes that spoke of things I hadn't dreamed of since I was a teenager. My heart constricted and tears started to pool in my eyes. I wasn't going to be successful in convincing him to leave me. I didn't even know if I wanted him to leave me. It didn't matter what I wanted, though, everybody left me sooner or later, and I had worked too hard on not letting people in, to throw it away in the vain hopes that Paul would be different.

He seemed to search my eyes for something, and I didn't know if he found it or not, but he sighed and slipped one arm under my knees and the other behind my back. He scooped me up as if I was as light as a feather and carried me over to my truck.

"Run ahead, Quil, we'll meet you at Sam's," he said to the wolf, and it didn't even faze me that he was talking to an animal as if he was having a normal conversation. The wolf made a yipping sound and ran off towards the woods. _Did he really understand what Paul had said?_ Paul gently placed me in the passenger side of the truck and then slid in behind the wheel. The key was still in the ignition and I watched silently as he turned it and began driving away from what was supposed to be the place of my death.

About 30 minutes later we were driving down the narrow roads of La Push. Neither Paul nor I had spoken a word the entire ride. I sat with my cheek pressed against the window, just staring blankly at the scenery passing me by. I didn't know what was going on, or where we were going, but I didn't care anymore. I was tired. The kind of tired that could be felt down to the bone.

I didn't understand my feelings for Paul or why he seemed to care so much for me, but I refused to think about it. I had nothing left. I couldn't afford to get attached to him, and I could definitely not let him get too close to me. He would only end up paying the price, and for some inexplicable reason, the thought of him getting hurt in any way was beyond painful.

The truck came to a stop in front of little red cottage that looked as if it had come straight out of a fairytale. There were beautiful flowers in the planters underneath the windows, a couple of inviting chairs on the porch, and I could see a wonderful kitchen garden to the right side of the house.

Whoever these people living here were, they did not deserve to get involved in my messed up life. That thought sobered me up and I pulled myself together, preparing to grab the keys to the truck and drive off as soon as Paul got out.

"Not going to happen," he said.

"What?" I feigned ignorance.

"You're not getting away." With those words he took the key out of the ignition and stepped out of the truck. He ran around the truck and yanked the door to my side open, giving me a commanding look that clearly said 'get out here'. I ignored him and stubbornly remained seated.

"Oh, for fuck's sake," he sneered and reached in to grab me. I tried to scoot away from him, but ended up thrown over his shoulder kicking and screaming. He didn't seem fazed by my kicks at all and just walked over to the house, threw the door open and barreled inside. I heard a gasp and a few snickers so I knew there was a small gathering of people there to witness my arrival, ass first. _Great_.

"Paul, what are you doing? Put the poor girl down now!" a female voice demanded, and I would have kissed her if she had managed to hide the laughter in her voice a little better.

"Damn, Paul," a male spoke. "I didn't know you were that hard up for a piece of ass that you had to drag one home against her will. They usually throw themselves at you, lost your touch?" The room erupted in laughter and I screamed out in frustration.

"But it's definitely a niiiice ass," another male drawled out. Paul abruptly set me down on my feet and stood in front of me, shielding me from the others. He let out a low growl that both freaked me out and turned me on. _Humans don't growl_. What had I gotten myself mixed up in now?

"Whoa, relax, man," the man complimenting my ass said.

"You stay away from her, Collin," Paul said, the warning clear in his voice.

"Okay, I've had it!" I exclaimed, pushing my way around the infuriatingly gorgeous man that somehow seemed to think I was his. "What the hell is going on? Who are you people and what do you want from me?"

"Bella Swan?" someone asked with shock. I frowned and quickly scanned the faces before me, but I didn't recognize anyone. A beautiful woman with scars running across half her face took a couple of steps forward and smiled sweetly at me.

"I'm Emily," she said, and then gestured towards the group standing behind her. "Please forgive their behavior, Bella, they're just an unmannered pack of wolves." By the glint in her eyes and the chuckles ringing out from the others I got the distinct feeling that I was missing some sort of inside joke.

"Let me introduce you to everyone," she continued. "We've got Embry, Quil, Seth, Brady and Collin." They each gave me a little wave or a nod as Emily went through their names, but my eyes stayed with the one named Quil. That was the name Paul had called the wolf back at the Cullen house. _That was one hell of a coincidence._

"Didn't you fill them in on what was happening, Quil?" Paul asked.

"None of them were phased and I haven't had time to tell them yet," Quil answered. "The others know, though, and they're on their way."

The one named Seth suddenly sniffed the air and turned to me. "Are you hurt, Bella?"

"What?" I asked bewildered. I had pulled the sleeve of my hoodie down during the ride over here and my cut couldn't be seen.

"I smell fresh blood," Seth said with a concerned tone.

"Will someone please tell me what the fuck you're all talking about?" I was beyond confused now. "You can smell my bleeding, you're talking about 'phasing', whatever the hell that is, and you all act like you know me." I was so angry and frustrated, my body started to tremble and I could feel myself losing the tenuous control I had over my emotions.

Suddenly I was wrapped up in Paul's arms again. He held me close to his chest and I instantly calmed down. I didn't know if the was the warmth of his body, his slow steady breathing, his tantalizing smell, or just something about him, but I felt safe and comforted in his arms. This only added to my confusion, but I decided to push it all away for a moment and just let myself relax in his embrace.

The reprieve was short-lived, however, because the door was slammed open again and another young man stormed in.

"Bella!" he called out. I lifted my head from Paul's chiseled chest and looked at the face of the newcomer. His hair was cut short, and his face was more mature than I remembered, but there was no doubt in my mind, it was Jacob. He gave Paul a look as if asking for permission for something, and Paul gave him a smile and a nod before letting go of me.

As soon as Paul released me from his embrace Jacob swooped down and lifted me up in a bone-crushing hug. He was sobbing and saying my name over and over again as if he couldn't believe I was actually here.

"Jake, can't…breathe…" I squeaked and Paul once again let out a low growl.

"Oops, sorry," Jacob apologized and loosened his grip on me. "I'm just so happy to see you again, Bella. Where have you been? Do you know how worried I've been? What the hell were you doing at the Cullen house? Did you cut yourself or did someone hurt you?"

"Jake…" I tried to interrupt him, but he kept going as if he didn't even hear me.

"Are you alright? Why did you leave Forks? Why didn't you ever call me? I had to find out through Charlie that you were still alive!" He was working himself up towards anger now, and that pissed me off, he had no right to be angry with me. He was the one who stopped talking to me all those years ago and wouldn't even take my calls.

"Jacob…" I said a little louder, and I got his attention.

"Oh God, Bella," he continued, all traces of anger gone. "I'm so sorry about Charlie. We tried… we weren't there… too late," he struggled to say. "I'm so fucking sorry, Bells."

I didn't know why he was apologizing; it wasn't like he could have done something to prevent Victoria from killing Charlie. That was all on me.

I noticed more people coming through the door; they were all huge men wearing only cutoffs. No shoes. _Was that the official dress code for young men at La Push?_ My eyes met the eyes of the last one in, and for the second time today the world around me seemed to disappear. I wanted to hold him, kiss him and never let him go.

"Oh, fuck!" I heard someone say behind me, and that broke me from my trance. _What was it with these guys?_ Why did I react to them this way? Sure, they were hot as hell, and that might have explained my intense need to jump their bones, but it didn't explain my feelings of wanting them to be happy and safe.

For the last four years I had trained myself to not care about anyone, I couldn't afford it, it would only hurt them, and me, when I had to move again. I'd had some one-night stands, but they were only about physical gratification. What I felt for Paul and this new guy was something entirely different, and the questions and confusion of the day kept growing.

"Hi, I'm Jared," the new guy said shyly, holding his hand out for me. Almost against my will I smiled at him and closed the distance between us. His hand was warm and soft, and I wanted to hold it forever.

"Hi, Jared," I whispered. "I'm Bella."

"Bella," he breathed, my name sounded like a benediction on his lips.

"What the fuck?" Jacob suddenly bellowed. "I thought Paul had imprinted on her?" I regretfully let go of Jared's hand and looked questioningly at Paul.

He looked me straight in the eye, tilted his head to the side a little and firmly stated, "I did."

"What?" I asked, not following what they were talking about.

"Well, it looked a lot like Jared just imprinted," Jacob continued, ignoring my question.

"I did," Jared softly said, looking at me with complete adoration. I didn't understand how he could look at me like that, we had just met, but I wasn't unnerved by it and that scared the crap out of me.

"You _both _imprinted on the same girl?" Jacob said in astonishment, and then his shoulders slumped and he looked very defeated. "You both imprinted on _Bella_," he said, sounding absolutely heartbroken.

"She must be a wild one, to need two wolves," someone chortled, and both Paul and Jared spun around and growled.

"Shut up, Collin," someone else admonished, and I had reached my limit.

"Everybody shut the fuck up!" I shouted. "I've had it with all of you! Emily, do you have any alcohol?"

"Y-y-yes," she stuttered out, and I felt a little bad for yelling at her, she had been nothing but nice to me. I took a deep breath and offered her a small apologetic smile.

"I need something strong," I implored, and she gave me a nod and headed for, what I presumed, the kitchen. I heard some clinking noises, but no one said a word. Emily returned after only a minute with a bottle of tequila and a shot glass.

"Perfect," I commented and eagerly took the glass and bottle from her. I plopped down on the couch, poured a shot and knocked it back immediately. The burning sensation in my throat and stomach felt great, and I quickly refilled the glass.

I lifted my head from the alcoholic nectar and looked around the room. Everyone was staring at me with astonished expressions. I raised an eyebrow and simply said, "Explain."


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you for all the wonderful support you've shown me and my story. I've been practically giddy with all the reviews and alerts that I've received.

Huge thanks to Simaril, my wonderful beta and friend, for working on this story despite being uncomfortable with some of its content. I flove you, sweetie!

**Disclaimer- All recognizable copyrighted and trademarked items mentioned herein belong to their respective owner, most especially Stephenie Meyer. Everything else belongs to the respective author.**

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><p>JPOV<p>

"Fuck my life," Bella said for the fifth time in the last hour and downed another shot of tequila.

I wasn't sure how many she'd had, but she could definitely handle her liquor, unlike Emily who was clearly inebriated by now. She had joined Bella after a while and had probably only had about half the amount of alcohol than Bella, but Emily's eyes were glazed over and she was giggling uncontrollably, whereas Bella barely seemed tipsy.

For once I wished that alcohol affected us, I could use something to relax me. I had so many thoughts running through my mind and all sorts of new and unfamiliar emotions coursing through my body. I'd thought I'd known what imprinting felt like, I'd had seen it enough in the minds of Sam and Embry, but I was sorely mistaken. It was one thing to witness it, and a whole other actually experiencing it. Not to mention the fact that I apparently shared my imprint with Paul.

As soon as I saw Bella and looked into her beautiful brown eyes I knew I would never be the same again. I needed to know her, to make her happy, to keep her safe, and I desperately needed to touch her…

The last thought made me slightly uncomfortable. I was not the most experienced guy. _Oh hell, who am I kidding?_ I had no experience at all.

I'd had a brief relationship with a girl named Kim in high school, but things had never gotten further than fairly innocent kisses. Just when our relationship had started to progress, I had phased for the first time and that changed everything. Through Sam's mind I saw the effect his imprinting had on both him and Leah. I liked Kim, and I didn't want to risk hurting her like that, so once I had enough control over my wolf to be able to see her again, I broke up with her. At the time I wished I would have imprinted on her, but that didn't happen, so I figured ending the relationship before it got more serious was the right thing to do.

A few months later Leah phased, and my beliefs were cemented. The pain she felt over Sam leaving her for her cousin was something I never wanted to inflict on anybody. I avoided dating altogether and mostly hung out with the rest of the pack. The guys gave me a lot of crap over being 22 years old and still a virgin, but it never bothered me that much. I knew that when I finally met the right one, it would be worth the wait.

Well, now I had met her, and I was scared shitless. She was so incredibly beautiful, and the way she carried herself spoke of strength and confidence. I had no illusions about her being a virgin, but that didn't bother me, even if the thought of her being intimate with other men made me somewhat jealous. I was actually glad that one of us would know what to do. The thing that scared me was that Paul also had imprinted on her. How would I ever measure up to him?

Paul was certainly no virgin. He shared my philosophy of not getting into a relationship where the outcome could be disastrous, but that didn't stop him from getting what he wanted physically. He reasoned that if women wanted him, who was he to stand in their way? He always made sure they knew it would never go any further than just sex, and in most cases they were okay with it.

Through the pack link I had seen far more of Paul's sex life than I cared to think about. To have front row tickets to his wild sexual prowess was a source of excitement for most of us, even though it used to make me slightly uncomfortable at times. When I thought about it now, I felt incredibly intimidated. What could I possibly do for Bella that Paul couldn't do a million times better?

"You okay, Bells?" Jacob's question effectively pulled me out of my musings and I looked up to see what was going on. Bella was staring blankly into space, shaking her head. At the sound of Jacob's voice, she snapped her head towards him and laughed mirthlessly.

"Oh, sure," she started, and rose to her feet. "I'm perfectly fine, Jake. I come home, after being on the run for four years, to say goodbye to Charlie and to finish this whole travesty, and what do I find? My former best friend is a fucking werewolf, not to mention _two_ of his fellow werewolves apparently think I'm their soul mate. I'm just peachy."

There were so many things about that statement I wanted to question, but I got stuck on the part where she was in disbelief about Paul and me. Didn't she believe us? Didn't she feel the connection? I wasn't sure how this imprint with three people was supposed to work, but I knew that I had never felt anything like it. Paul was obviously thinking something similar because he got up and walked over to her.

"Look at me, Bella," he said, getting really close to her. She tilted her head back and looked him straight in the eye.

"Tell me you don't feel it," Paul demanded. I could hear her heartbeat quickening and she unconsciously licked her lips.

"I don't know what…" she said, trailing off when Paul stepped even closer. Their bodies were only inches away from touching and they were both breathing heavily.

"Tell me you don't feel it," Paul said again, with a husky voice. "Tell me you don't feel the connection, the desire, the _want_." He reached out and gently touched her bandaged arm.

"Tell me you don't feel the need for me to be safe, happy and _satisfied_." With that last word he put his other hand on the small of her back and pressed her into him. Bella let out a noise that was something between a gasp and a moan. "Because I sure as fuck feel it," Paul stated, gazing into her eyes before bending down to capture her lips with his.

As soon as Paul's lips met Bella's it was as if someone flipped a switch in her. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him back feverishly. Paul groaned at her response and lifted her up. She moaned and instantly wrapped her legs around him. He pushed her up against the wall and ground his hips into her, eliciting another delicious moan from her.

It was as if they had forgotten that there was a room full of people watching them with rapt attention, they were in their own little bubble where nothing else mattered. I felt someone's eyes on me and I turned my head to see Emily giving me a wistful look. She was probably thinking I would be jealous or hurt by their display, but strangely I wasn't. I felt an odd sense of calm and happiness at seeing them together. Not to mention how extremely erotic the sight was. I could feel myself getting uncomfortably hard, and decided to step outside for a moment. I didn't want the whole pack to witness my reaction.

I quietly slipped out the back door and relished in the fresh air that hit my face. I took a few cleansing breaths and went over to sit on one of the benches Sam and Emily had in their back yard. I sat with my head in my hands, trying to sort through my thoughts and feelings.

"You alright, man?" a voice asked, making me jump. I looked up and saw Paul standing there, smirking at my reaction. It wasn't often we were caught off guard and I had clearly not heard or sensed him coming out to join me. _Some werewolf I was_.

"Yeah," I answered, not knowing if it was true or not. Paul sat down next to me and we sat in silence for a while, each one lost in thought.

"Was it hard for you to watch us?" he asked after a while.

"No," I simply said. I didn't know how to explain how it had felt to see them together like that. He looked searchingly at me, and seemed to come to the conclusion that I was telling the truth.

"It's weird," he said, "but the thought of you being with her doesn't piss me off."

"Yeah, I know," I sighed. It was weird. We had seen how Sam and Embry reacted to guys looking at their imprints in inappropriate ways. They were very possessive and we had attributed that to their wolf sides, but maybe we were wrong, maybe it was just the two of them being extra jealous?

"When I was watching you kiss her, I felt _happy_?" It came out sounding more like a question than anything.

"Yeah? That's good, because I'm never going to stop kissing her," he stated with certainty.

"That good?"

"Holy fuck, man," he chuckled. "I've never felt anything like it."

"Huh." I wondered if the imprint enhanced the sensation or if Bella was simply that good a kisser.

"The crazy part is that I want you to kiss her too," Paul said with incredulity in his voice. "The thought of anyone else touching her in any way drives my wolf wild, but it's different with you."

"It must be the imprint," I mused.

"Must be," he agreed, and once again we slipped into our own thoughts. The silence was broken by the sound of the back door opening. Bella made her way out on slightly unsteady legs and both I and Paul broke out in silly grins at the sight of her. I walked over to her, offering her my hand, it was starting to get dark and I didn't want her to trip. She gave me an appreciative smile and slipped her small hand into mine. The sensation of her touch caused my heart to leap and butterflies to start swarming around in my stomach.

We walked over to the bench and I gestured for her to take a seat next to Paul. She sat down without releasing my hand and I found myself sitting close enough to her that our thighs were touching. The feel of her jeans clad leg against me sent shivers down my spine. _Jesus, if I reacted this way to an almost touch, how was I going to survive something less innocent?_

"It's nice out here," Bella said. "I always loved spending time in La Push," she added nostalgically.

"I hope you're not opposed to the idea of spending even more time here in the future," I said carefully, knowing that if it was up to me and Paul she would be moving to La Push as soon as possible.

"The future," she whispered sadly. Paul and I exchanged a look; we didn't like the tone of her voice. It sounded as if she didn't think she had a future.

"Yes, the future. Your future, _our_ future," Paul emphasized. Bella frowned and then shook her head as if to clear it of unwelcome thoughts. She turned slightly on the bench and faced me. I immediately mourned the loss of contact with her leg, but I was thankful she still held on to my hand.

"Are you okay?" she asked me. "I can't say that I completely understand this whole _imprinting_ thing, but I know that I don't want you to be sad."

"I'm not sad, Bella," I said, wondering why she would think I was.

"You left," she almost whispered. "Paul and I were…kissing, and you left."

"Oh." The light bulb appeared. "I didn't leave because I was sad, Bella, I liked what I saw. I just needed to get some air and try to gather my thoughts a bit," I explained, hoping to reassure her that she'd done nothing to upset me.

"You liked what you saw?" she asked me with a mischievous look in her eyes.

"Y-y-yes," I stuttered out, my mouth suddenly feeling very dry.

"Hmm," she practically purred, looking at me intently. She tilted her head a little to the side and pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth. She was beyond beautiful and I wanted desperately to kiss her, but I was too nervous, and my body seemed paralyzed.

Excruciatingly slow, Bella began moving closer to me. Her eyes darted between my eyes and my lips, showing me that she intended to kiss me. I licked my lips in anticipation, but still couldn't move. I took a breath and smelled the sweet smell of Bella mixed in with the spicy smell of tequila. Her lips gently brushed against mine and good lord, they were soft. She looked me in the eye and then kissed me. It was sweet and soft and warm and… Her tongue darted out, licking my lower lip, sending bolts of electricity through my body.

My lips parted and her tongue began to explore my mouth. I could taste the tequila, but mostly she tasted like…_home_. My arms unfroze and I wrapped them around her, pulling her a little closer. Our tongues played, danced and tasted. It was sinful and delicious and I needed more.

I swiftly changed positions so I was straddling the bench; I easily lifted her up and pulled her to sit on my lap. She wrapped her legs around me and I could feel her body pressed up against me. She was so petite, but I could feel her strength. She was not as fragile as she looked. She moaned into my mouth and I involuntarily bucked my hips up. _Sweet spirits, she was driving me insane_.

I sensed movement behind her and opened my eyes to see Paul scooting closer. He leaned in and started pressing soft kisses to her neck. Bella broke our kiss and gasped for air.

"You're so beautiful," I whispered and she smiled. I leant my head down and captured her lips again. My previous insecurities were forgotten and I acted purely out of instinct. I nipped and sucked on her lips, one at a time, and reveled in the sounds she made. I saw Paul's tongue licking up and down her neck and she started to gyrate her hips against me, seeking friction. I was painfully hard, and the thought of her using me for her own pleasure only turned me on more.

"Let's go to my place," Paul said, and my eyes widened at his suggestion. _She was going to freak out and pull away from us_. She didn't. Instead she hissed out a 'yes' and pushed down on me a little harder. I groaned and swallowed hard, I was going to cum right here if she didn't stop her motions.

Paul stood up and pulled Bella off my lap, I shot him a grateful look and he gave me a small nod. Bella reached out her hand to me and we started to walk towards Paul's house, knowing that the others would hear us leave. I heard Collin and Quil comment on how lucky we were to get such a hot imprint, and speculate on what we were going to do to her. The last thing I heard before we were out of earshot was Emily reprimanding them.

Thankfully Paul didn't live far away from Sam and Emily so it didn't take us long to get there. The closer we got, though, the more my insecurities came back, and I was starting to get nervous. What if I did something wrong? What if I disappointed her? How would she feel about being with a 22 year old virgin? What did I have to offer her?

Paul more or less threw the front door open and pulled Bella in. She laughed at his eagerness and it was the most beautiful laugh I'd ever heard. He lifted her up to kiss her and once again I stood to the side and watched her wrap her legs around him. The sight of them together still made me happy, but I was anything but calm this time. They were moving in perfect harmony with each other, kissing, touching everywhere they could reach. They were beautiful together and I was starting to panic. My erection was still extremely prominent, but I didn't know what to do.

"Jared," Bella moaned, and for a second I thought she'd got our names confused. "Come here, Jared," she said, sliding down from Paul and holding out her hand for me to take.

I slowly walked over to her and her tiny hand disappeared into mine. Her touch instantly calmed me, but the nerves were still there. She tugged on me, and I let her lead me over to the couch. We sat down and Paul excused himself to go grab us some sodas.

"Am I not reading you correctly, Jared?" Bella asked and upon seeing my confusion continued. "I think you want me," she said with a glance at my crotch.

"God, yes," I breathed.

"Then what's wrong?" she asked, biting her lip. I closed my eyes trying to prepare myself for any kind of reaction she would have to what I had to say.

"I…don't know…what to do," I managed to say.

"Jared, look at me," she appealed, and I opened my eyes to meet her own, which held such warmth and compassion they made me gasp. "Honey, are you a virgin?" Her voice was tender and I nodded my head in confirmation.

She pulled her legs up underneath her and got up on her knees; she took my head in her hands and looked me deep in the eye. "Do you want me to change that for you?" she asked. Her voice still soft, but it had a husky tone to it that went straight to my groin. I nodded again, not trusting my voice at the moment, and she smiled and leaned in to kiss me.

Her lips, her tongue in my mouth, her hands running through my hair and down over my shoulders… every movement she made turned me on and reassured me that I was in for the time of my life. I felt relieved by her reaction and my heart soared. This amazing woman wanted me. I tangled a hand through her silky hair and let the other trail down her back towards the hem of her top. I needed to touch her, but I was still a bit too nervous to dare to take her clothes off.

"Take it off," Paul suddenly commanded. Bella and I broke our kiss and looked over at Paul who stood leaning up against the kitchen door post. He had an intense look in his eyes which was completely contradicted by the casual stance of his body.

He raised an eyebrow and repeated, "I said, take it off." His voice was low and throaty, and I could feel Bella shiver in response before she did as he'd ordered. Her tank top was thrown away and I was staring at her lace-covered breasts.

"Touch her," Paul directed, and my hands instantly cupped her breasts. They were perfectly round and firm and I could feel her nipples start to pebble under my touch. Bella's hands went behind her back and she unclasped her bra. I slid the straps down her arms and gently removed the bra, leaving her completely bare from the waist up.

"You're beautiful," I admired, looking at her pink nipples that were pointing at me.

"Touch me, Jared," she urged me and took my hands so I was once again cupping her breasts. Her skin was so soft and smooth and I very gently massaged her flesh. She threw her head back and arched into my touch. I shot a look at Paul and he seemed to understand what I needed.

"Taste her, Jared," he said. "Taste her skin; see how her nipples feel on your tongue."

If someone would have suggested yesterday that I would be this close to a gorgeous woman I wouldn't have believed them, and if they would've said that Paul would be there as well, directing me, I would have laughed and told them they were crazy. There was no way I would want him to witness my actions, let alone tell me what to do, but everything had changed during the span of a few hours.

I realized that I wasn't quite as intimidated by Paul's experience anymore, and I actually welcomed his orders. Somehow it gave me a sense of security to know that he was here, confident and in charge. The fact that it seemed to excite Bella as well was like delicious icing on the best cake ever.

I shifted my position on the couch so I could bend down to put my mouth on her breasts. As soon as my tongue touched her nipple she let out a hoarse moan and I was lost. I licked, sucked and nipped on her nipples and was amazed by her response. _I was making her feel that way._ A new scent started to saturate the air around us; it was sweet and spicy at the same time. My mouth watered and I wanted desperately to taste it.

I heard Paul take a deep breath and with a groan he asked, "Smell that, Jared?" I hummed around the nipple I had between my lips and the vibration caused a small 'oh god' to slip from Bella's mouth.

"Hmmm, I think it time to take the pants off her as well," Paul pondered. "She smells so delicious." I hummed my agreement again and the scent became stronger. _Fuck, it was driving me crazy._

"Stand up, Bella," Paul ordered, and Bella did as she was told with an excited expression on her face. "Take them off," he continued. "Slowly," he added when Bella's hands yanked the zipper down. She groaned, but then got a wicked gleam in her eyes.

"Slowly?" she asked in a sultry voice, taking a couple of steps back so she was out of my reach. She raised her hands and let her hair loose from the ponytail. It cascaded down her back and she gave her head a little shake to toss it around the way she wanted it. She had beautiful long shiny hair, but my attention was quickly drawn from it when she started to play with the hemline of her jeans.

She ran the tips of her fingers languidly under the hem and rotated her hips. She was putting on a show for us, knowing it would drive us insane with desire. She stepped out of her shoes and agonizingly slowly began to pull her jeans down. I caught a glimpse of blue lace and then she turned around so her back was towards me. She stood with her legs straight and bent her upper body down while sliding the jeans over her ass and down her long lean legs.

"Fuck," I grunted when she wiggled her cute little ass at me. She somehow managed to take her jeans off completely while turning around to face me, giving Paul the exquisite view of her ass in the air. She raised her head slightly and made eye contact with me; she winked playfully at me and reached for her panties. She slid them down slowly and Paul's breathing got heavier.

I tried to discretely adjust my erection, but Bella caught my movement and licked her lips. I looked mesmerized at her as she zeroed in on my crotch and dropped down on all fours. She crawled over to me, never taking her eyes off of the bulge in my cut-offs. Her hands touched my calves and trailed up over my knees and thighs, up to the buttons in my fly which she deftly opened. I lifted my hips, allowing her to pull the shorts off. I sighed at the relief I felt to no longer be confined in the denim and Bella gasped when she saw me.

"Commando?" she asked, looking up at me.

"Makes it easier-" my words got stuck in my throat when she stuck her tongue out and licked me. My cock twitched and she grabbed it by the base, her hand didn't quite reach around it and that seemed to please her. She flattened her tongue and licked all over my shaft, completely ignoring the sensitive area on the tip. I gripped the sofa cushion so hard I was afraid I was going to rip it apart. The sensation of her wet tongue on me together with her scent was overwhelming and I thought I would go crazy if I didn't get a release pretty soon.

Paul quietly walked up behind her and crouched down. I saw him reach out and from Bella's yelp I figured he surprised her with his touch. Pretty soon, though, she started moaning and moving her hips against his hand.

"Do you like my fingers inside you?" Paul asked.

"Yes," she hissed and looked over her shoulder at him. He suddenly slapped her ass and I could feel my eyes widening as I saw how much Bella enjoyed it.

"If you want me to keep fingering you, babe, you need to stop teasing Jared, and suck him off," Paul said with a smirk. _Oh god_.

Bella moaned and swiftly wrapped her lips around me. _Holy shit!_ She lowered her mouth and I could feel the tip of my cock touching the back of her throat. She swallowed around me and then hollowed out her cheeks and moved back up my length, swiveling her tongue around my head. Her head was bobbing up and down and I had never seen a more erotic sight.

I closed my eyes, my senses were working overtime and I needed to eliminate one in order to hold on a little bit longer. The feel of her magic mouth was incredible, and the wet sounds of Paul working his fingers in and out of her were beyond tantalizing. The scent of Bella's arousal was calling to my wolf and I could almost taste her in the air. I wanted to make love to her and my wolf wanted to fuck her and mark her.

"That's it, Bella, keep going," Paul instructed and my eyes flew open. "I won't let you cum until you've squeezed every last drop out of Jared." She moaned around me and the vibrations were heavenly. I wasn't going to be able to control myself much longer and I needed to warn her.

"Close…move…fuuuuck." Instead of moving away, she increased her pace and I was lost in a haze of lust and pleasure. I came harder than I had ever done in my life and Bella hummed and swallowed as much as she could, the rest of it running down her chin. I reached over and grabbed my washed out shorts and gently wiped my cum away from her face. She smiled at me and I felt my heart swell.

Paul sped up his movements and within a few seconds Bella was gripping my hands tightly for support as her body was trembling and her head was thrashing around. I watched in fascination as her chest reddened and her breathing got erratic. Her eyes glossed over and her mouth turned into the cutest shape of O.

"Oh god, oh god, oh god," she panted and then her whole body froze. For a second I was afraid something was wrong, but then she was screaming and vibrating and I realized she was having an intense orgasm. Paul held onto her waist, keeping her in place and I was still holding her hands. I had never seen anything more beautiful than Bella in the throes of orgasm, and I wanted to see it again and again.

Paul slowly loosened his grip on her and she collapsed with her face in between my legs. I pulled her up and sat her on my lap, rubbing her back while she got her breathing back to normal.

"That was amazing," I uttered. "You're so beautiful." I kissed her cheek, her temple, her nose, anything I could reach and she giggled. Paul got up and went into the kitchen, he returned with the sodas he was supposed to get earlier. Bella and I each grabbed one and eagerly let the cold liquid sooth our dry throats.

Paul plopped down on the couch next to me and pulled Bella's feet up in his lap. The three of us sat in comfortable quiet for a while and there was a sense of peace and tranquility in the air that was a stark difference to the charged atmosphere a few moments ago.

Bella suddenly yawned and threw her hand up to cover her mouth. "I'm sorry," she apologized.

"Don't be," Paul said, and started to rub her feet. "We want you to relax around us." I nodded my agreement and continued to caress her back.

Her body relaxed again, but she looked at Paul and said, "But you didn't get to cum." She tilted her head and looked up at me. "And we didn't change your virgin status," she said with a small tired smile.

Paul and I chuckled at the adorable girl we were somehow blessed with. "That's okay, baby, you rest," I whispered and pulled her head towards my chest. She snuggled in closer and I heard an 'okay' before she fell asleep in my arms. Paul and I looked at each other and smiled. It had been a life altering day, but I doubted either of us had ever been happier.

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><p>My story Hunger has been nominated for an Emerging Swan Award. Go check out the nominees and vote for your favorite. emergingswanawards(dot)blogspot(dot)com


	3. Chapter 3

Huge thanks to Simaril, my wonderful beta and friend, for working on this story despite being uncomfortable with some of its content. I flove you, sweetie!

**Disclaimer- All recognizable copyrighted and trademarked items mentioned herein belong to their respective owner, most especially Stephenie Meyer. Everything else belongs to the respective author.**

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><p>BPOV<p>

_Running. Always running. Feet pounding on ground. Fear racing through veins. Laughter following me. Eyes watching. Dark eyes. Lifeless. Panic. Then red. Red hair. Red eyes. Taunting. Anger mixes with fear. More running. Death. Despair. Hopeless. Screaming._

"Bella," a voice called. Not the voice I was expecting.

"You're dreaming, baby," the voice said. "You're safe." Warm arms touching me, holding me tight. _Safe?_ Warmth all around me, soothing me.

I slowly started to regain consciousness and carefully pressed my body backwards. There was a very warm body behind my back, spooning me. I peered down and saw a russet arm wrapped around me. _Who did it belong to? Where was I?_ I was used to feeling disoriented when I woke up from one of my nightmares, but I was more confused than usual.

I never allowed myself to fall asleep at some guy's place, and to wake up cocooned in warmth was a totally new feeling. What was unnerving, though, was the sense of calm and serenity I felt in his presence. I didn't understand my own feelings and I was scared.

"You're safe, baby," the voice said again, and this time my brain connected the dots. The voice belonged to Jared. The sweet, caring, beautiful Jared. It was his arms around me, his warmth that seeped into my every pore, warming me from the outside in.

He said I was safe, but I wasn't. I hadn't been safe for years. I felt safe in his arms though, and I desperately wanted to hold on to that feeling as long as possible.

"Jared?" I asked. I knew it was him, but I needed the confirmation that he was real and not an apparition. I was scared that my mind had conjured him up to trick me into a false sense of security, only to later drop me back into the harsh reality, where I once again was all alone.

"Yes, Bella, it's me," he assured me and pressed a kiss to the back of my head. "You had a bad dream, but it's over now. I've got you."

"Mmm," I hummed, wishing it were true. The dream might be over, but the nightmare was still very much alive.

"You fell asleep in my arms last night, and I carried you to bed," he explained, and I had a vague memory of him and Paul holding me. "Paul had to go to work early, but he'll be back in the afternoon."

"Can we stay here till then?"

"Here at Paul's or here in bed?" he asked with a slight tremor in his voice.

"In bed," I answered. I couldn't tell him that I wanted to prolong this moment, to savor his touch and the feelings he awoke in me, before it was all over. I felt tears well up in my eyes and I furiously swallowed the sob that threatened to break free. I wished so badly that I could stay like this forever.

"We can do whatever you want, Bella," he said and started to draw lazy circles with his thumb against my arm. His gentle, loving touch broke my defenses and the tears began to fall.

"Are you crying?" he asked, taking a deep breath. He sounded so concerned about me and it broke my heart.

I suddenly realized that he could smell my tears. The thought of him sniffing the air seemed extremely funny to me. I chuckled quietly, but unfortunately that action broke the dam and the sobs broke through. I was border-lining on hysterics, laughing and crying at once. There was nothing I could do to stop the onslaught of emotions rushing to the surface.

Jared just held me tight, and let me cry. I was grateful that he didn't ask what was wrong, or try to tell me that everything was going to be okay. His quiet strength and the warmth of his body eventually calmed me down and I turned around to face him. He was looking at me with such love in his eyes that it made me gasp. He smiled softly and wiped the tears from my cheeks with a gentle touch.

"You're beautiful even when you're crying," he whispered reverently. I fought off the snarky remark that threatened to make its way out of my mouth. I didn't want to resort to my usual defense mechanism, not when he was being so open with me. Instead I leaned in and kissed him.

His lips were so soft and they moved in perfect harmony with mine as if we'd been practicing for years. I gently prodded his lips with my tongue and he instantly let me in. The taste of him set me on fire and I needed more. I heard myself moan and his arms tightened around me, pressing me closer to his body. I could feel him getting harder against my thigh and the knowledge of this beautiful man being turned on by me, even in the state I was in, was extremely arousing.

The kiss started out slow and sweet, but soon turned heated, and the passion between us took my breath away. I broke contact with his luscious lips and threw my head back, gasping for air. He kissed my jawline down towards my neck. His tongue darted out, licking that sweet spot behind my ear, causing me to moan again. I could feel him smile against my skin before his tongue darted out and flicked my earlobe, and then gently sucked it into his mouth.

"Mm, feels so good," I encouraged. I never wanted him to stop touching me, but knew I was on borrowed time. That thought threatened to break me down again, and I needed his help to stave it off. To take my mind off the misery that was my life.

"God, Bella, your skin is so smooth, and you taste so good," he whispered against my ear, making me shiver with desire. I ran my hand down his back, feeling his muscles ripple under my touch.

"You know, we didn't actually rectify your _situation_ yesterday," I said suggestively, and let my hand follow the indentation of his 'v' downward. Jared sucked in a breath of air when my hand reached his cock. I slowly trailed a finger along his length, feeling the silky skin around the hard core.

"Bella," he groaned.

"Mm hm," I responded as I circled the head of his cock, causing it to twitch. I tore my eyes away from it and looked him in the eye. "I think it's time we do something about it, don't you?" His eyes widened slightly and his fingers dug into my back.

"God, yes," he said before kissing me hard, thrusting his tongue into my mouth. His demeanor suddenly changed from the somewhat insecure young man I had met, to that of a passionate, strong one. I could feel every nerve ending in my body respond to his touch, and his lust fueled my own.

I stopped teasing him and wrapped my hand around his cock. He moaned and pulled me closer to him. The taste of him in my mouth, the sounds he made, and the feel of his warm, muscular body against mine, sent me into sensory overload. His warmth engulfed me, and it was working its way in to my very core. I could almost feel some of the barriers I had put up around my heart begin to crumble, but I was too consumed by him at the moment to let it scare me.

He pulled back and looked at me; his eyes blazing with desire. "You need to stop, Bella," he said. I looked at him, confused. Didn't he want me anymore? Had I misread him?

He grabbed my hand that was squeezing his cock and suddenly I was lying on my back with my hands over my head. He leaned in and pressed a kiss to my temple. "You need to stop touching me, or it will be over way too soon," he clarified with a small embarrassed smile.

"Oh." _Oh_. The problem wasn't that he didn't want me, quite the opposite actually. My ego restored, I smiled back at him, letting him know I understood. His lips were back on mine in another heated kiss. I tangled one hand in his hair and let the other explore the muscles in his arm.

"Ugh," he grunted, and once again I found myself with my hands over my head. "Keep your hands here, Bella," he said with a commanding tone. _Oooh, I liked that._

He placed soft kisses up and down my arms, and I smiled at the gesture. He may have found a new sense of confidence, but he was still the sweet Jared from before. His kisses continued down my body, past my breasts, down one leg and up the other. He tasted every inch of my skin with the exception of where I wanted him the most. He was driving me crazy.

He added his hands and I was being explored through touches, kisses, and licks. He was looking at me as if I was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen, and I felt beautiful under his gaze. His hands were slowly circling my breasts, inching closer and closer. I was holding my breath, waiting for him to reach my nipples. I couldn't believe how hard they were already; he hadn't even touched them yet.

He was watching his hands intently, seemingly fascinated by what they were doing, and I couldn't help myself. I arched into his touch, finally feeling his warm hands where I wanted them. We both let out breaths at the connection, and he looked me deep in the eyes.

"You're so beautiful," he said with reverence.

"So are you," I said, and his dark brown eyes glinted with amusement at my statement.

His attention shifted back to my breasts, and he alternated between soft caresses and slight pinches. His leaned down and took a nipple in his mouth, and I moaned at the feeling. My moan seemed to encourage him, and I was lost in a sea of licks, pinches and nibbles. I was struggling to keep my hands from reaching down to touch him, and grabbed hold of the headboard to keep them anchored.

All of a sudden I realized that one of his hands had traveled down my body and was now close to my burning core. I felt a finger gently probe my entrance, and then it finally slipped in. We both moaned at the sensation and his moan send tremors through me. It wasn't so much a moan, I thought, but more of a low growl. It had to be the wolf part in him, because no human would be able to produce such a sound. I'd heard growls before, but Jared's growl didn't cause the usual reactions of fear, it turned me on. I wanted to hear it again, and bucked my hips up so his finger slipped in deeper. To my delight he growled a little louder this time, and _oh god_, that was hot.

"Can I taste you, Bella?" he asked in a husky voice, looking up at me with begging eyes.

"God, yes," I panted out, tightening my grip on the headboard. He slowly kissed his way down until I felt his warm breath in between my legs. His tongue darted out and replaced his finger inside me. As soon as he got a sample of me, his growls began again, and he appeared to lose all remaining traces of insecurity. His tongue and fingers worked simultaneously all over me, inside and out. For someone with no experience he sure seemed to know how to handle a clit. And his sound effects? _Fuuuuck me!_

"Oh, god," I moaned. "I…close…I…" I couldn't form words, and I was holding on to the headboard as if my life depended on it. I could feel the orgasm building and building and building, and then I exploded. My whole body stiffened and locked into an arching position, and I think Jared was holding me down. The orgasm was so intense that I was screaming at the top of my lungs. I was becoming too sensitive and I desperately clawed at his head, trying to pull him off. He slowed down his ministrations and gave me one last long lick before raising himself up on his knees to look at me.

My breathing was shallow and fast, and I couldn't get my eyes to focus. I blinked furiously, trying to clear my vision. Through the haze I saw Jared watching me with a smile on his face. He looked like a man who knew he'd just satisfied his woman, and I loved seeing him like that. I felt a few more barriers give way around my heart, and I reached out to him, I needed to feel him close to me.

I could taste myself on his lips, and surprisingly I found that I liked it. We kissed leisurely for a while, his body pressed against mine. I could feel his erection and I wanted to take care of him. I pushed at his chest, indicating that he should move.

"Roll over," I said. "I want you on your back." His hands trembled lightly at my request, before he quickly complied. I smiled at his eagerness, and rose to my knees beside him. I allowed myself to take the time to look at his gorgeous body stretched out before me. I could see the strength in his thighs, the highs and valleys of his abdomen, every contour of his chiseled chest, and the veins over his bulging arm muscles. He was simply a work of art, and my eyes drank him in. I needed to feel him, and judging by the occasional twitches of his cock he needed to feel me.

"Do you know if there's a condom here somewhere?" I asked him, thinking that a man like Paul most certainly must have a box or two at hand.

"Yeah, I think there's some in the drawer," Jared answered, looking at the nightstand. I didn't question how he knew this, but opened the drawer and pulled one out. I tore the plastic open and rolled the condom down his length, all the while feeling his gaze on me. He drew in a sharp breath when I pushed myself up to straddle his stomach.

I leaned down and whispered in his ear, "I'm going to take you for a ride now, wolf boy." His exhale came out a mixture of chuckles and moans. I scooted down and felt the tip of his cock against my entrance. I slowly lowered myself down, taking him in inch by inch.

"Oh, sweet spirits," he said and grabbed hold of my hips when he was in to the hilt. I set a slow pace, enjoying the feel of him inside me and the sight of his face, experiencing this for the first time.

"Bella," he said in a breathy voice.

"Mm."

"Bella, you feel…" he trailed off when I increased the speed. I took his hands and guided them to my breasts. "Oh, fuck," he exclaimed. I rotated my hips on the way up and plunged quickly back down. Jared was cupping my breasts and he watched us intently where we were joined. The intensity of his gaze, and the awe on his face made me feel powerful, and I recognized what a gift he gave me with his virginity. I not only got to witness this gorgeous man feeling this kind of pleasure for the first time, but I got to be the one to introduce him to the wonderful sensations we were experiencing.

It was a beautiful moment and I never wanted it to end. Unfortunately the first time usually doesn't last very long, and I could see that he was getting close. He had a look of utmost concentration, and I realized he was trying to fight off his orgasm as long as possible. I clenched my inner muscles around him and rejoiced in the moan triggered by my action.

"Let go, Jared," I urged him. "I want to feel you cum." My words send him over the edge, and I could feel his cock twitch inside me as he roared out his orgasm. I moved slowly, easing him down from his high until I felt him start to soften inside me. I grabbed hold of the base of his cock and eased him out of me, pulling the condom off, tying it off before throwing it on the floor. I crawled up and lay beside him. He instantly wrapped his arms around me and drew me close.

"That was amazing," he said. I smiled and kissed his shoulder where my head was resting comfortably. I felt warm, safe, and at peace. "_You_ are amazing, Bella," he added, kissing me on top of my head. My heart swelled at the loving tone in his voice and his gentle caresses of my back. I wished I could stay in his arms forever, but with the haze of lust dissipating, the clarity of reality came crashing back.

I knew I had to leave pretty soon; it was too risky to stay any longer than I already had. I took a deep breath, savoring Jared's musky scent, and sat up.

"What are you doing?" he asked, concerned.

"I need to go," I said, avoiding looking at him.

"Go?" he said. "Why? Was it not…was I not…?"

"Oh, god, no," I quickly turned back towards him. "It was wonderful. _You_ are wonderful." I willed him to believe me, and I could see him relax slightly.

"Then why are you leaving?" he asked with a frown.

I sighed. "I need to go _because_ you are wonderful; I can't put you at risk." _Please don't ask. Please don't ask._ I begged silently.

"What are you talking about, Bella?" Does this have something to do with why you were outside the Cullen house yesterday?" _Damn_.

"Please, Jared, the less you know, the safer you are," I pleaded with him.

"The safer _I_ am? Bella, I'm a shape shifter, remember? I can take care of myself."

"I'm sure you can, under normal circumstances, but this is anything but normal."

He snorted. "There isn't much _normal_ in my life, Bella," he stated with a hint of sadness in his voice. I felt really bad for him, but I refused to add to his troubles. I was going to leave him with the untainted memory of me, and not drag him into my messed up life. I stood up and started the search for my clothes. _Where the hell were they?_ Oh, right, I had stripped in the living room.

"I'm just going to the bathroom, and get dressed, okay?" I said, hoping to be able to slip out afterwards. He narrowed his eyes, but then nodded his head, and I hurried out of the room. I quickly gathered up my clothes and made my way to the bathroom. The house was small enough, and the bathroom was easy to find.

I peed, splashed some water on my face, and started to get dressed. I really wanted to take a shower and brush my teeth, but what was the point? It wasn't as if I needed to be squeaky clean for her. Or maybe I did? She would be able to smell Jared, and probably Paul as well, on me. I couldn't risk her picking up their scents and going after them just because they had been close to me. I wouldn't put it past her; she was vicious enough to do anything that would hurt me. Letting me know right before she killed me, that she was going to kill them, was something that she would take great pleasure in doing.

I quickly hopped into the shower, where I proceeded to scrub every last trace of the two beautiful men off me. I wished it was that easy to rid my heart of them as well. There was no denying that they had left quite the impression on me, and it was hard to believe that I only met them yesterday. I knew that if I allowed the walls around my heart to come down farther, I could easily love them both.

It must have something to do with the imprinting they had told me about, but it didn't make much sense to me. How could I be the soul mate to two men? How would that even work? Not that I would be around long enough to find out, but it was still a puzzling thought. They must have made a mistake. I couldn't possibly be the right match for not only one, but two of the most beautiful men I'd ever seen. I had absolutely nothing to offer them. Only pain, misery, and death followed me, and I would be doing the world a favor by letting her kill me once and for all.

On that depressing note, I got out of the shower, dried myself off, and got dressed. I jumped when I heard a door slam shut. Did Jared leave? I held my breath and listened hard for any kind of noise. I couldn't hear anything, and realized that now was probably the best shot I had of escaping without being noticed. I slowly opened the bathroom door, and padded out into the hall, shoes in hand. Keeping my head down to see where I stepped, I walked silently towards the front door. All of a sudden I walked into something warm and hard. My head snapped up, and I stared into the angry eyes of Paul.

"Where the fuck do you think you're going?"


	4. Chapter 4

Huge thanks to Simaril, my wonderful beta and friend, for working on this story despite being uncomfortable with some of its content. I flove you, sweetie!

**Disclaimer- All recognizable copyrighted and trademarked items mentioned herein belong to their respective owner, most especially Stephenie Meyer. Everything else belongs to the respective author.**

PPOV

Bella froze in front of me, eyes wide open.

I looked down at her and asked again, "Where the fuck are you going?"

I didn't try to hide the anger in my voice, and from the corner of my eye I could see Jared frown at me. That only served to piss me off further. He was the one who'd called me, frantically saying that I needed to come home because Bella was leaving and he didn't know what to do.

Sam had been understanding, and told me to take the rest of the day off. We were ahead on the current contract anyway, so he could manage without me. He'd been surprised that I had even showed up for work at all today, given that I was newly imprinted and that usually meant struggling with an overwhelming need to be close to the imprint. I tried to explain that the need to be close to Bella was very much there, but knowing that Jared was with her somehow took the edge off.

I didn't understand it myself, but when I left this morning I had been happy. Jared and I had talked for a while during the night, and we both experienced a sort of blissful emotion thinking of the other one being with Bella. I'd expected to be possessive and jealous, but I wasn't; at least not where Jared was concerned.

We had talked about what had happened with Bella, and he had shared his insecurities when it came to sex. I had sensed that he needed some coaching, and I was more than happy to take charge, being naturally dominant. The fact that Bella was turned on by my commands only solidified how right she was for me.

I was amazed by her, she was obviously grieving, but she was still so full of fight. I couldn't wait to get to know her better, and of course it didn't hurt that she was hot as hell. I knew that Jared had the day off, and told him that there were condoms in the drawer of my nightstand. I had smirked at his shocked face, and told him that I believed his first time should be between him and Bella, without me.

Judging by the smell of sex in the air, Jared was definitely not a virgin anymore. I was happy for him, but I couldn't focus on that right now. It was time for Bella to give us some answers, preferably starting with why she was trying to run away. The thought of her leaving made me feel like a fuck-hot poker was being jabbed into my heart. I wanted to shake some sense into her, but first I needed to know what I was up against.

"I need to go," she said, and I could see how she struggled to keep herself together. Whatever was going on with her was clearly upsetting her.

"Where?" I asked, my voice cold.

She flinched a little at my tone, but that was the only way I knew how to deal with the pain in my chest. I'd been through a lot of pain in my life, and I had learned to handle it with anger and detachment in order to keep myself together.

"Why do you want to go, Bella?" Jared asked gently. He was much better at the compassionate stuff than me.

"I don't _want _to go," she said, and continued before we could question her, "but I need to go. I can't stay here any longer. You're at risk with every minute I'm here, and I have to go." She started to sound desperate, and I could see some of the walls she had around her start to tremble. I recognized the walls, I had a fair amount myself, but the thought of our imprint not letting us in was painful.

"I have to go," she said again. "I can't stay, please let me go. You can't get hurt because of me, I couldn't bear it. I need to go, please. I c-c-can't…"

She started to hyperventilate and I quickly gathered her up in my arms and carried her into the living room. She was pounding at me with her small fists, and the look of panic on her face was killing me. I sat down on the couch with her in my lap, when she realized I wasn't letting go of her she broke down and started to sob.

Jared came and sat down next to us, and we both held her as she cried. I could see the same pain in Jared's eyes that I felt, and I knew we would do anything to make her feel better. After a while her sobs quieted and she got her breathing under control again.

"Tell us, baby," I implored.

"Yeah," she sighed and slumped against my chest, finally giving up the fight. "I don't know where to begin."

"The beginning is usually a good place to start," I said, earning a small chuckle from her.

"Okay, I guess I should start with the Cullens then," she said.

Both Jared and I stiffened at the name. I knew it had something to do with the bloodsuckers, but to hear her say their name so casually grated on my nerves.

We motioned for her to continue, and she told us how she met the leeches, and fell in love with _Edward_. His name on her lips made me want to punch something, but I tried to remain calm. I couldn't start to freak out on her when she was just starting to open up to us. Jared and I sat completely still and listened to how she faced a vampire on her own, thinking he had her mother. She didn't go into too much detail of what happened, only that she was hurt and the vampire was killed by the Cullens.

"So you're telling me they killed one of their own?" I asked surprised.

"Yes."

"Huh." Maybe the leeches had some redeeming qualities after all.

Bella continued to tell us about what happened at her birthday party, and the redeeming qualities were quickly tossed out the window again. When she talked about how the leech left her in the woods, Jared and I shared a look. We had both been searching for her that night, together with Sam, and the memory of her curled up on the wet ground had been haunting us ever since. She had looked so incredibly small and fragile. At the time I had thought the sight of her like that was painful because we hadn't done our job of protecting the humans properly, but now I started to wonder if there wasn't more to it.

"Why did you leave Forks? Where have you been?" Jared asked the questions that had been running through Jake's mind, and consequently all of our minds, for years.

"Jacob was my lifeline back then," she said wistfully. "He was the only brightness in my life, and when he suddenly withdrew from me, refusing to even talk to me over the phone, I thought he'd finally had enough. I saw him one day, and knew I had to get away."

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused.

"I was heading to his place to confront him when I saw him from a distance. I saw how much he'd changed, not just physically, with the short hair and tattoo, but the light was gone. I thought I had broken him. He was my sun, and if I left, maybe I'd take the eclipse with me and he could shine again."

Fuck. When Jake heard this, his feelings of guilt would double. He'd been convinced that he'd driven her off when he wasn't allowed to see her after he first phased. He'd been beating himself, and Sam, up over it ever since.

"Oh, honey," Jared murmured.

"Yeah," she sighed. "Of course, now I know it's because he grew fur and started to run around on four legs." We all laughed a little at that, and I had to marvel at the selfless creature in my lap.

I hated to break the lightness of the moment, but I had to ask, "So where did you go, and what have you been doing?"

She started to shift uncomfortably and I knew there was something she was reluctant to tell us. I began to run my fingers through her hair, and Jared pulled her feet up in his lap and started to rub them slowly. She relaxed under our touches and took a deep breath.

"I didn't know where to go at first, but I ended up in a small town in Wyoming. I was lucky to find a job at a little bookstore. The owner had a small apartment that she let me rent." Bella's eyes took on a faraway look, and it was clear that she was very fond of the woman she was speaking about. I was happy to know that she'd met a nice person who helped her out.

"After a few months I started to get this weird feeling that I was being watched." Jared and I both stiffened at the thought of someone stalking our girl. "I couldn't see anyone though, so I tried to shake it off, but the feeling only intensified, and then one day…" Her voice broke, and I could see her fighting her tears. She pulled her legs off Jared's lap and went to stand up. I didn't want to let her up, but I managed to curb my instincts and just watched her start to pace the room.

"One day I got a call to the store," she said, her voice taking on a detached quality. "It was Becky, the owner, asking me to close up the store and come over to her house. I knew something was wrong, because she'd never close the store early, so I did as she asked. When I got to her house I found her sitting at her kitchen table, but she wasn't alone."

I could see Bella's hands trembling slightly and I tried to prepare myself for what she was going to tell me. I knew it had to be bad, and I was imagining all sorts of things, from rapists to murderers, but her next words weren't anything I'd expected.

"Victoria was there."

_Huh? Who the fuck was Victoria?_

"Victoria is the mate of James, the vampire that the Cullens killed." Jared and I both started to growl, and Bella paused, waiting for us to get it together. I couldn't get my thoughts together. She'd been in the same house as a grieving vampire, and lived to tell about it? Nothing made sense, and I forced myself to quiet down in order to hear her out.

"You're ready to listen now?" she asked, glaring at us. At our nods, she sighed and continued, "Victoria wanted revenge for the death of James, and she was determined to get back at Edward by killing his mate in return."

"You're not _the bloodsucker's_ mate," I snarled, feeling very possessive.

"I know that," she said flatly, "and I told her that. I told her that Edward had left me and wouldn't care whatsoever if anything happened to me. Victoria just smiled at me, and said that she'd already figured that out, and that she'd changed her plan." I really didn't like where this were going.

"She said that she'd get her revenge on the Cullens eventually, but I was to blame for them killing James in the first place, so I was going to pay anyway." Bella closed her eyes and seemed to steel herself for the next part. "She made me watch as she slowly tortured Becky to death. There was so much blood, and I'll never forget the look of terror and pain in Becky's eyes. It didn't matter what I did or how much I begged Victoria to kill me instead–"

Jared and I shot up from the couch, we were both shaking with anger and we needed to regain control so we didn't phase and hurt Bella. She looked at us and started to walk towards us.

"Don't!" Jared shouted. "We could hurt you." Bella cocked her head to the side and watched us closely.

"It's okay," she said soothingly, and came closer. "See, I'm okay." She reached out and laid a hand on each of our chests, and just like that our trembling stopped. We pulled her closer to us, cocooning her in between our bodies, making sure she was safe.

"How did you know?" Jared asked after a while.

"Know what?" she said, her voice muffled against my chest.

"That we would calm down and not hurt you if you touched us," he clarified.

"I don't know," she said, and tried to shrug her shoulders. We loosened our grip on her to enable her to move a little easier. "I figured you were upset with the thought of me being in danger, and I thought if you felt for yourselves that I was okay, you'd feel better."

"Pretty risky move, baby," I said. As much as I appreciated the effect she had on us, I wasn't too thrilled about her putting herself in harm's way like that.

"Maybe, but I feel safe with you, and I don't think you would hurt me."

"Not intentionally, no," Jared assured her, "but we could hurt you if we lost control and phased too close to you."

Bella frowned, and almost whispered, "There are far worse things than physical pain."

The sadness in her voice cut me to the bone, and I steeled myself for what was going to come. I couldn't imagine the terror she felt watching the leech torturing and killing her friend. _How the fuck had she managed to get away from a vampire?_

"Tell us, baby," I said, pulling her with me towards the couch. The three of us sat down, Bella in the middle so Jared and I could touch her and hopefully stay calm throughout the rest of her story.

"Victoria eventually killed Becky," Bella said with that detached voice again. I realized that she needed to distance herself from her words in order to talk about it, but it was eerie hearing her talk like that.

"I thought she would kill me next, but she didn't. Instead she told me to take a good look at the woman lying dead before me, and how she would still be alive if it wasn't for me."

I seethed. _I was going to find that bloodsucker and rip her to tiny fucking pieces._

"She told me to run, and I did. I've been running ever since. Never staying in one place too long, trying not to get close to people. I wasn't always successful, and more people were killed for simply knowing me."

"Are you telling us that the fucking leech was stalking you and killing people who befriended you?" Jared asked through gritted teeth.

"Yes."

That was some fucking psychotic shit even for a vampire, and I was struggling to keep my growls to myself.

"About eight months ago I found a small abandoned cabin in the woods outside of Tuskegee, Alabama. I made it my home and only ventured into populated areas when I absolutely had to. I figured if I never talked to anyone, she would eventually tire and kill me. I was wrong and…" Her voice broke at the end and the emotions she'd been holding off seemed to force their way onto her. Her shoulders started to shake and I could smell the saltiness of her tears.

"She killed my dad," she choked out.

"Fuck!" I yelled. The bloodsucker that killed Chief Swan was the one who'd been after Bella. We thought he had been unlucky to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, but apparently that wasn't the case at all. We'd been chasing that redhead for weeks, but she somehow always got away from us. If we'd done our jobs better maybe Bella's father would still be alive.

"I'm so sorry, Bella," Jared said, the grief and guilt thick in his voice. "We should have worked harder to catch her, to kill her. I'm so sorry we failed you."

Bella let out a gasp and I waited for the moment that the meaning of the words sunk into her, bracing myself for her loathing. She stood up, obviously not wanting to be close to us anymore, and turned towards us. I flinched at the fire in her eyes and could almost feel my heart breaking from knowing that my imprint hated me.

"Failed me?" she screeched. "What the fuck are you talking about? You didn't even know me, how the hell were you supposed to know that Charlie was in danger? I didn't even know that!" _Okay, not the response I was expecting._

"I should have known she wouldn't just kill me when I changed the rules to her little game," she spat. "I should've realized she would go after someone important to me. This is all my fault, and I'll be damned if I let you think you could have done something to save Charlie."

_Her fault? Was she fucking crazy?_

"I made the worst mistake yet and it got my dad killed, but I'm not going to let you get dragged into it any more than you already are. I'm going to do what I came here to do."

I really didn't like the calm determination in her voice. She had made a decision, and the dots finally connected in my mind. Her coming back to Forks, standing outside the leeches house bleeding. She was serving herself up for the redhead. She was here to die.

"What?" I snarled. She didn't even flinch at my tone, but instead looked me straight in the eye and sighed.

"You deserve so much better than me," she said, sounding sad, but still resolved.

The anger I felt coursed through my veins, filling me with determination of my own. I wasn't shaking, there was no risk of my accidentally phasing; this was another type of anger.

"That's not true, Bella," Jared said, pleading with her. "You're our imprint. The spirits would never have chosen you if you were not right for us."

"Then I guess they made a mistake," she said, shaking her head.

_That's it, I'd had enough_. I was pissed off that she thought so little of herself, and she clearly hadn't grasped the concept of imprinting. It was time to show her that she belonged to us as much as we belonged to her.

I could feel my wolf urging me on; it was time to claim my mate and mark her so all doubts were erased from her mind.


	5. Chapter 5

I'm so sorry about the delay with this chapter, and for not replying to reviews. I'm having some major health issues at the moment, and it's taking all of my energy to just get by from day to day. I'm hoping to get back on track with my writing soon. Thank you for your patience.

Huge thanks to Simaril, my wonderful beta and friend, for working on this story despite being uncomfortable with some of its content. I flove you, sweetie!

**Disclaimer- All recognizable copyrighted and trademarked items mentioned herein belong to their respective owner, most especially Stephenie Meyer. Everything else belongs to the respective author****.**

BPOV

"Then I guess they made a mistake."

The words had barely left my mind before I heard a low growl coming from Paul. I looked at him and gasped. He looked thoroughly pissed off, only this time it wasn't at Victoria or anyone else, this time it was at me. I swallowed loudly when I saw his jaw clench and his eyes burning with an intensity that made me weak in the knees. He started to slowly walk towards me and I instinctively took a step back. He looked absolutely feral, like he was stalking his prey, and I felt a shiver run down my back at the thought that I was the prey in his sights.

Suddenly my back came in contact with something, and I realized I had backed myself straight into a wall. Paul's lips curled up in an animalistic grin when he saw my predicament. The muscles were rippling under his skin, and the slow pace he was moving in allowed me to see every gorgeous inch of him. He was beyond beautiful, the feral glint in his eyes only adding to his bad boy look, and I found myself wishing he would get to me faster.

I still wasn't sure what he intended to do with me, but surprisingly I wasn't scared. I still felt unbelievably safe in his and Jared's presence, and I knew they would never hurt me. I could feel the heat emanating from Paul's body as he got closer to me, and my eyes were transfixed on his every movement.

"You think the spirits made a mistake?" Paul asked in a low voice, and placed his hands against the wall, effectively caging me in. I hoped he wasn't expecting an answer because I was unable to form words. He wasn't touching me, but his proximity was intoxicating and all I could do was swallow loudly again, which earned me a delicious chuckle.

"I think it's time to set a few things straight, little girl," he said. "We belong to you in spirit and in flesh, and you belong to us." I wanted to argue that I wasn't a possession for anyone to claim, I was my own being, but deep inside I knew he was right; I was theirs. They might deserve better than me, but it didn't make it any less true. I belonged to them.

It didn't matter though, I needed to protect them from the destruction that followed me. I had never felt anything like they made me feel, and that made me even more determined to stick to my guns and get as far away from them as possible.

_Why couldn't they see that they were better off without me?_ The thought of leaving them made my chest ache, but the thought of them getting caught in the crossfire and ending up as pawns in Victoria's sick game made me ill. I needed to keep them safe.

Paul was studying me, and I guess he saw my inner struggles through my eyes because he snarled and pushed his body close to mine.

"I can see that mind of yours going a hundred miles an hour, but it's time to stop thinking and start feeling," he said, accentuating his words by bending his knees and thrusting his erection against my core.

_Holy hell, he felt good._

"I'm going to shut that fucking brain up," he growled, and I could feel the vibrations reverberate through my entire body. "You'll only be able to think about where you want us and how hard you want to be fucked."

_Oh yes, please._

I felt my feet leave the ground and instinctively wrapped my legs around him, enjoying the feel of body against mine. His lips were on mine in a fierce kiss, his hands grouping my ass, pressing me towards him. He was controlling every inch of me and it was the hottest thing I'd ever experienced. He broke the kiss and started to suck the point where my neck met my shoulder, and I heard myself moan loudly.

All of a sudden there was a ripping sound and I felt air hitting my chest. I realized he'd torn my shirt clean off my body, and my bra quickly followed. This wasn't going to be slow and gentle. He was going to fuck me hard, and I was almost shaking with the need to have him inside me. The effect he had on me was amazing; I'd never been more turned on in my life.

"Jared, come here and take her pants off," Paul ordered, shifting me in his arms so my legs were no longer around him. He was holding me up under my arms as if I was light as a feather, and somehow still managing to nibble at my breasts at the same time. The sheer strength he possessed overwhelmed me and a whimper escaped my lips.

"Are you okay, Bella?" Jared asked in a concerned voice.

"She's fine," Paul answered in my stead. "Now take the fucking pants off!"

"Yes," I hissed, sensing that Jared needed to know that I was a willing participant. As soon as he met my eyes a smile spread across his beautiful face, and my jeans and panties were gone.

"You like it when he's rough with you," Jared said in amazement. I could only nod slightly and moan in response, when I felt Paul lifting me up higher. He pressed me back against the wall, only this time my legs were on his shoulders and his face was right in front of my pussy. He wasted no time and thrust his tongue into me causing me to cry out.

I frantically held on to his head for support as he worked me over with that devilish tongue of his.

_Dear god, he was talented_.

My clit was licked, nipped, sucked, and flicked to the point where I feared I might cry from the intensity. He was growling constantly, and the vibrations added to the frenzy I felt. His fingers were digging into my ass cheeks and I knew I would have bruises later, but I couldn't care less.

My orgasm hit me fast and hard, and I was crying out my release. I heard someone say 'fuck', but for the life of me I couldn't tell if it was me or Jared. I was starting to come down from my high, but Paul didn't slow down his actions.

"S-s-sensitive," I stammered, but he didn't relent. His tongue continued with the frantic pace, and he didn't even seem to notice that I was tearing at his hair. I could feel the coil in my stomach tighten, and once again I fell over the edge. The intensity of the second orgasm was insane, I'd never felt anything like it. It came in waves,and as soon as I thought the pleasure was starting to diminish it increased again. I lost track of how many times I came. When Paul finally slowed his movements down, I was panting hard and my voice was hoarse from screaming.

He lifted me off of his shoulders, but mercifully didn't put me down on my feet. My whole body felt like jelly and I wouldn't have been able to stand on my own. He carried me over to the area rug in front of the couch where I saw Jared sitting, cock in hand, slowly stroking it.

_Fuck that was a beautiful sight._

Paul dropped me on the rug, and I gracelessly slumped down on my ass. I glared at him, but he only smirked back and started to unzip his pants.

"Get up on all fours," he commanded, and I quickly obeyed. There was something incredibly arousing about him calling the shots, and I had no problems submitting to him at all. I heard the sounds of foil being ripped open and turned my head to see Paul rolling a condom over his impressive cock. I was practically whimpering with need to feel him, and thankfully I didn't have to wait long.

"Is this what you want, baby?" Paul asked, lining himself up against my entrance. "You want to feel my cock in you pussy?"

"Yes," I moaned, and he pushed himself into me.

"Fuck," he exclaimed. "You feel so good around my cock, baby."

_Oooh, I loved the dirty talking._

"Look at Jared over there," Paul said. "I think you need to take care of him as well, don't you?"

"Mmm." Was the only thing I managed to get out.

"Jared, come on over here," Paul ordered. "Fuck her mouth while I fuck her pussy."

_Oh, god._

Jared got up and walked in front of me. I raised myself up a bit and took his cock in my mouth. I tried to concentrate and make it pleasurable for Jared, but it was hard to focus with Paul pounding into me. I let the motion of his thrusts work for me, and taking Jared in deeper every time Paul was into the hilt in me. By the sounds of Jared's moans I must have been doing something right even if my focus was split.

"That's it, make him come in your mouth," Paul said, adding a swiveling movement with his hips that made him hit my sweet spot. I moaned around Jared, and that was enough to send him over the edge. He twitched in my mouth, and I eagerly swallowed everything he gave me.

As soon as Jared was finished, Paul pulled me up on my knees so I was leaning back against him. The change in angle caused me to explode and I was contracting around him, making him growl. The growl sent more vibrations through me, and prolonged my orgasm. Paul let out a roar and suddenly sank his teeth into my neck. The intense pain of his bite made me shiver, and strangely enough caused me to orgasm again.

I screamed and cried, the emotions running through me too powerful to handle. The pleasure and the pain were intense, but the feelings of being owned were extreme. I felt like I was exactly where I belonged for the first time in my life. I felt safe and loved.

Paul pulled out of me, licked the wound on my neck and nestled me into his lap. He rocked me as I cried, and I suddenly understood what he'd been talking about earlier. I did belong to him, and he belonged to me. We deserved each other, and we would face anything together.

"That's it, baby," he whispered in my ear. "You feel it now. You're mine, and I am yours."

This time the words didn't make me want to assert my independence. I knew with absolute certainty that he was right; I belonged to them as surely as they belonged to me.

JPOV

I sat watching Bella throw her head back, laughing at something Angela said. It warmed my heart to see her so happy, and I knew that Paul felt the same way. Things had changed after he marked her earlier. It seemed as if a weight had been lifted off Bella's shoulders, and she had finally let us in. She'd told us that she'd never felt as if she fit in anywhere, and for the first time in her life she felt that she truly belonged somewhere. With us.

I was amazed that the marking had that effect on her, and I wondered briefly if my mark would have the same impact. I'd been a little worried about how she would react to Paul marking her without talking to her about it first, but she quickly put my worries to rest. She had a lot of questions about the significance of the marking and why I hadn't done it when we had made love in the morning.

We explained to her that it was part of the wolf claiming his mate, and that the wolf inside of us let us know when the time was right. I hadn't felt the need to mark her yet, and we'd speculated that maybe she needed Paul's wolf more than mine at the moment. Strangely enough I didn't feel left out, or jealous. I was genuinely happy for them, and I felt sure that my turn would come.

There were so many things about the double imprint that were a mystery to us, and the elders were going through all of the old records, trying to find anything to explain the unique occurrence.

"Hey, baby, having fun?" I heard Paul asking Bella while walking up to her and wrapping his arms around her waist.

She leaned into him and tilted her head back. "I am," she answered, sounding a little surprised by the fact. "I can't believe Angela is here, and knows everything about wolves and vampires. It's so surreal."

"Tell me about it," Angela retorted. "Imagine my surprise when I found out what the Cullens were, and that my friend from high school was involved in a world I didn't even know existed." She smiled, probably thinking back at her reaction to Embry imprinting on her a couple of years ago. After the initial shock had subsided, she'd been more troubled about Bella than anything else.

Jake and Angela shared a special bond in their love and concern of the human girl getting tangled up with vampires and practically disappearing off the face of the earth. They worried about her and were always relieved when Chief Swan informed them that he'd received one of Bella's occasional phone calls.

I had to stop myself from thinking of Chief Swan because that would inevitably lead to thoughts of the leech that was after Bella. All of those thoughts were banished tonight. After the emotional day we'd had, we decided that we needed to relax and have a little fun. Bella didn't want the rest of the pack to know about her 'vampire situation' just yet, there would be time to deal with it later.

We gathered the pack and the imprints and threw an impromptu bonfire, celebrating our new imprint. Everyone was confused about how the double imprint was supposed to work, but they were happy for us nonetheless. Jake and Angela were naturally ecstatic with the fact that Bella was back in their lives.

It was no secret that Jake had been in love with Bella before he phased, and that he'd wished he would imprint on her when he saw her again. During the four years that had followed since then, Jake had moved on. He still had feelings for Bella, but they were no longer the all-consuming ones of a teenage boy. His first reaction to our imprinting on her had been jealousy and sadness, but he seemed to be more accepting of it today. There was no doubt in my mind that he would always love her, and the knowledge that he would do just about anything for her warmed my heart.

Emily was her usual kindhearted soul and welcomed Bella with open arms. Both Emily and Angela were happy to have another female around, and when Emily figured out that Bella could cook she quickly became her new best friend.

Embry and Sam were obviously happy that their imprints were happy. Sam had made a quiet observation earlier about the positive impact that Bella seemed to have on everyone, and he thought it would benefit the pack as a whole. Imprinted wolves are more stable, and god knows Paul needed some stability.

Seth had instantly started to treat Bella as his sister, probably due to the fact that his mother had been close to Chief Swan. We'd all been waiting for them to either get married or move in together, unfortunately that would never happen, but in Seth's eyes, Bella was his sister. Leah was a whole other story. She was being her usual standoffish self when it came to new people, and she'd hardly spared Bella a second glance.

Our resident goof-ball, Quil, was unusually quiet. I'd expected him to crack jokes, and tease us about the three-way imprint, but he kept looking at us with an odd expression on his face. When confronted about his weird behavior, he'd admitted that watching the imprint taking place between Paul and Bella had made an impact on him. He realized that he would like to experience it for himself one day.

Collin and Brady, the youngest of the pack, had quickly descended upon me, intent on getting me to phase so they could see for themselves exactly what had happened between us, since they saw us last night. They were horny bastards, and the thought of threesomes was beyond thrilling to them. The fact that Bella was, in their words, 'smoking hot' didn't help things. They were running around, trying to show each other up in front of her, hoping to impress her. As long as they didn't take things further, Paul and I were able to laugh at their antics, but they were walking a fine line.

It was starting to get late and the moon was bright in the sky, beautifully reflected in the ocean. We all huddled together around the bonfire, talking, joking, and simply having a wonderful time. Bella was sitting between Paul and me, holding our hands. The magnitude of the bond that had already formed between us was remarkable, and I felt at peace.

That peace was quickly shattered however, by howling in the distance, alerting us to danger. With the exception of me and Paul, everyone had taken turns on patrols tonight to allow everyone to participate in the celebration. At this moment it was Quil and Seth that were out there, and the howls they were letting out spoke of vampires in the area.

"Brady, Collin, you stay here with the women," Sam ordered. "The rest of you come with me."

Bella looked at me and Paul with worry clearly written in her eyes.

"We'll be okay, baby," Paul told her. "There are eight of us, there's no way a leech would get the drop on us."

"Stay here with Brady and Collin and we'll be back as soon as possible," I said, pleading with her to stay put where she was safe. Thankfully she nodded and gave us each a quick kiss before we took off towards the woods, phasing as soon as we reached the tree line.

"_Leech."_ Quil's voice was the first I heard. I saw through his eyes how he and Seth were in hot pursuit of something moving extremely fast. I couldn't quite make it out, but I knew by the smell that it was definitely a vampire.

"_It's a new one, never seen it before,"_ Seth said, and showed us an image of a young man with bright red eyes.

"_We're on our way, try to keep up with him, but don't engage on your own,"_ Sam ordered.

We raced through the woods, everyone's thoughts focused on catching the bloodsucker, when Quil suddenly cursed. _"Fuck, there's two of them!"_

We saw a flash of red to the left of him and the scent of the second vampire was alarmingly familiar. It was the redhead that was after Bella. Paul and I both growled and our minds instantly started to replay some of the things Bella had told us.

"_What the fuck?"_

"_Are you kidding me?"_

"_Why didn't you tell us?"_

The stunned thoughts of the others assaulted us when they realized what they heard. Most of them had only known Bella for a short amount of time, but as an imprint she was instantly under the packs protection, and the thought of someone hurting one of our own was horrifying. On top of that, Chief Swan had been a good friend to the tribe, and the knowledge that he was killed by the vampire in front of us sent everyone in to overdrive.

We ran faster than we ever had, Quil and Seth still on the male's trail, while the rest of us took after the redhead.

"_Damn it!"_ Quil yelled when he'd been close to getting a bite in on the bloodsucker who managed to twist out of the way in the last second.

Paul snapped his jaws and let out a roar when he only got a piece of the redhead's shirt in his mouth. He spat it out in disgust and if the situation hadn't been so serious I would have laughed at his repulsed thoughts.

We continued the chase and were soon joined by Quil and Seth who had been forced to abandon the male when he jumped in the ocean. We had no chance of catching up to a leech in the water, and since it looked as if he took off in the opposite direction of La Push we focused our attention on getting the redhead.

"_Fuck, she's a slippery one,"_ Jake growled. We were becoming more and more frustrated. Every time we were getting close to catching her, or surrounding her, she somehow managed to get away without a scratch on her.

"_How the fuck does she do that?"_ Leah was the fastest of us all and she was not happy about the fact that she wasn't able to get a hold of the leech.

"_Fuck, Collin!"_ Brady's voice was suddenly in our minds and we saw Collin soar through the air, landing against a cliff.

"_What's happening, Brady?"_ Sam demanded.

"_Leech showed up out of the blue, Collin didn't have time to phase before he got to him. I'm trying...fuck."_ We watched with horror as a leech with dreadlocks got his hands on Collin and then he was flying through the air as well. He landed at the edge of the forest, grunting as made impact with the ground, the air forced out of his lungs. The leech was on him instantly, crushing his hind legs. Collin's screams of pain mixed in with the screams of the girls who were now left unprotected.

"_Leave him alone!"_ Bella yelled, taking a step closer to the leech. Paul and I were growling and our paws were hitting the ground with unparalleled speed in our need to get back to her. Sam and Embry were hot on our heels, their minds racing with thoughts of Emily and Angela in the presence of a vampire.

"_What do you want, Laurent?"_ We heard Bella ask.

"_Does she know him?"_ Seth asked confused.

Collin was able to lift his head a little so we could see what was taking place before him. Bella was standing in front of Emily and Angela, seemingly protecting them from the leech. Sam and Embry's thoughts were filled with love for Bella for wanting to shield their imprints. Paul and I were terrified.

"_Why I want you of course, Bella,"_ the vampire said with an odd accent.

"_Victoria sent you."_ It wasn't a question, she already knew the answer.

"_Fuck, this whole chase was just a ruse to get us away from her,"_ Paul came to the same conclusion that I just did, and I wanted to kick myself for not thinking of it sooner. I prayed that we would get there in time, but we were still too fucking far away.

"_Yes, seems as if you changed the rules of the game, Bella,"_ the leech said with a smirk. _"Victoria is not happy with you. I should just kill you now; I would be doing you a favor."_

"_So do it,"_ Bella said, and I swear to god my heart almost jumped out of my chest. _"Just promise you'll leave everyone else alone."_ Her eyes were burning into the leech's and I marveled at her courage, while cursing it at the same time.

"_Ah, but I'm supposed to bring you to her,"_ he said, seemingly contemplating her offer.

"_Do you always do the things you're supposed to do, Laurent?"_

"_That's it, baby, keep him talking a little longer,"_ Paul encouraged her in his mind.

We were getting closer, and if she could manage to distract him long enough we'd be able to get there before anyone else got hurt.

"_I can't move,"_ Collin said, feeling frustrated that he was so close and yet wasn't able to do anything except show us what was happening.

"_It's okay, Collin, we're almost there,"_ Sam said, and hope started to be mixed in with our fearful thoughts. We would get there in time and take the leech down, and then we would take care of the redhead.

The leech's head suddenly snapped up and his eyes trained in our direction. _Damn, he knew we were coming._

_I'm sorry, Bella, but we're about to have company, time to get out of here"_ he said, and in the blink of an eye swooped her up in his arms and took off running.

"_Bella!"_ Emily and Angela were both shouting and crying. Collin was beating himself up over his inability to move. Paul and I both howled in frustration and fear. We were so close.

We raced through La Push, Sam and Embry staying behind with their imprints, taking care of Collin and Brady. The rest of us were furiously running and following the trail of the soon to be dead bloodsucker. After a while the scent veered off towards the highway and then it was gone. He must have had a car waiting for him.

Paul and I looked at each other. The pain we both felt was excruciating. Our imprint was gone. Bella was gone. The highway was eerily silent, and the animals in the woods seemed to have scurried off.

The only sounds that could be heard were the haunting howls of a pack of wolves.


End file.
